President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa today said that the health services, including those of doctors and nurses, are highly valued and instructed the relevant officials to take steps to make the approved nurses’ requests without affecting the entire public service ensuring that the financial situation in the country is properly understood.
“Despite the difficulties, steps have been taken to provide an allowance of Rs. 5,000 to all public servants from January. When one group makes a request, another group makes a request again. But it is important for everyone to understand that not all demands can be considered in the midst of the current financial crisis. Therefore, we will discuss with the Ministry of Finance and other agencies and pay attention to the requests of nurses in a manner that will not affect the entire public service, ”the President instructed the officials.
This was stated by President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa in a discussion held at the request of the Public Service United Nurses Association at the Presidential Secretariat this morning (17).
Commencement of Nursing University, promotion from Grade 2 to Grade 1, making 36 hours working hours as 30 hours duty within 5 days a week, Rs. 10,000 allowance proposed proportional to the Rs. 35,000 DAT allowance paid to medical professionals, the issuance of the Uniform Allowance Circular and the Additional Service Allowance at the rate of 1/100 of the basic salary were discussed during the meeting.
The President instructed the Chairman of the University Grants Commission, Senior Professor Sampath Amaratunga to amend the Higher Education Act and present it to Parliament expeditiously;
Until then, take steps to merge the nursing colleges and carry out other activities required to make it a national university.
Sampath Amaratunga said that the Higher Education Act will be introduced in Parliament by April and the Nursing University will be established before the end of May.
The President instructed the Secretaries of Health and Finance to make the necessary arrangements for the advancement of officials from Grade II to Grade I and the granting of uniform allowance.
President of the Public Service United Nurses Association Ven. Murutthettuwe Ananda Thero, Minister of Health Keheliya Rambukwella, Secretary to the President Gamini Senarath, Secretary to the Finance S. R. Attygalle, Secretary to the Health Major General Sanjeewa Munasinghe, Director General of Health Services Dr. Asela Gunawardena, Director General of the National Budget Jude Nilukshan, Director General of the Public Service Commission Hiranza Kaluthanthri, Secretary of the National Salaries and Remuneration Council Chandraani Senarathna and members of the State Service United Nurses Association were present at the discussion.
